[MARKET ANALYSIS] Asia-Pac stocks mostly took their cues from the record highs on Wall St, which helped the region shrug off the fresh US-Iran strikes

APAC Stocks: Mostly positive

• Asia-Pac stocks are higher as the region takes its cue from the gains on Wall St, where the S&P 500, Dow and Nasdaq 100 printed fresh record highs, which has helped regional bourses shrug off the geopolitical escalation, in which the US struck Qeshm Island, and Iran targeted US bases in neighbouring countries.

ASX 200: +0.6%

• Index is led by outperformance in the materials, mining and resources industries, but with gains capped as tech, telecoms and defensives lagged, while participants also digest the weaker-than-expected GDP data.

Nikkei 225: +2.7%

• Took inspiration from US peers and printed a fresh all-time high after climbing above the 68,000 level for the first time.

Hang Seng & Shanghai Comp: Hang Seng -1.8% / Shanghai Comp +0.5%

• Chinese markets are mixed, with the Hong Kong benchmark dragged lower by profit taking following recent earnings and mixed fortunes among the key tech stocks, while the mainland found support from the better-than-expected Chinese RatingDog Services PMI data.

US Equity Futures: Flat

• Price action is rangebound with futures pausing after recent advances.

European Equity Futures -0.1%

• Indicate a marginally lower cash market open with Euro Stoxx 50 futures down 0.1% after the cash market closed with gains of 1.2% on Tuesday.